Yes if it is Friday Night then it is time for A Fantasy Cut Above. While the rains and storms come pounding down at a feverish pace, we had to flee the beach like ants scurrying for a sugar cube. There are times where no one wins and this is kind of the time of year where we all get to that point. These are the dog days of summer (or the period that starts a week after the Frenzy and continues to almost Labor Day).
There is a growing reality that the fantasy hockey GM or fan kind of goes into this sort of hibernation mode this time of year. In more and more cases, that is proving to be quite false. When you really take a bare bones look at things, most dynasty and keeper leagues have started assigning draft dates, trade freezes are over, and rule changes abound as well.
Now in short term leagues (non-keepers), there are still some things to at least think about. For one, it is not as much about where you go for your information but just gauging all the wealth of sources that is out there. The key is just finding what works for you. The notion that you have to have piles of information at your disposal is ridiculous. Really it is horse poop. It has been said here that buying all these guides that cost not big $$$ but $$$ nonetheless can be foolish at the very least. Sure it is great to have all the number crunching you can ever dream about but there comes a time where there is a statistical overload that reaches epic proportions. No one really wants to experience that and yet it happens so often.
Then that “Fantasy GM” loses interest which is very easy to do in non-keeper leagues. I also understand that there are some great podcasts out there which are really the key along with other avenues of social media. Many of us have seen more fantasy hockey wars than we can count. We are humbled beyond anything to even be considered halfway decent in this realm but we follow the XM Home Ice radio shows religiously for fantasy information and of course their prospects and fantasy shows more intently. We are very fortunate to not only be able to have regular guests on that shape and influence the fantasy hockey industry to most importantly the people we talk to whether its on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis.
We also rely heavily on our friends from Inside Hockey and The Daily Faceoff as well amongst many others. I also heartily recommend anything from the folks at DobberHockey and there are just so many fine sites that you can find on our links page. What we are emphasizing is that take a look at the big picture and also remember that there are some players yet to be signed that can influence leagues and such.
Too often everyone gets wrapped in the “headliner” to forget the fine print which is why the more you know without overkill, the better off you are. If anyone thinks we are just blowing smoke up the proverbial back door then think again. There are some leagues that gather information like there is no tomorrow but those are definitely the exception rather than the rule. Take Tom Staada’s NAFHA league for example. No GM can ever say they are overloaded with information from them and yet every GM is well informed every time something occurs. They go the extra mile unlike so many keeper leagues that often drop the puck like a knuckler when you need them to fire a 100 mph slapper.
Our “Cut Above” focuses deeper between the lines of not only the players that control your destiny but the mindsets that go into what may or may not happen. Sure its great when they obscure sleeper bombs out a 55 point breakout rookie campaign but its even better when you can nail your opponents to the wall and almost know what they are going to do before they do it. Mental strategy applies everywhere from trades to transactions to draft day to beyond. If you think it is not paramount in your team’s success or failure then you are almost dead in the water even before the action gets going.
As the weeks go on, we are going to slowly delve into a little more the delicate balance of mind games and how they play a role in a variety of league formats. Mental strength must be achieved first and foremost because the road has many peaks and valleys and no one wins their league in the first month but create too big a hole and you can certainly vanish quickly. The reality is a fantasy hockey season for one year leagues is so much different than a keeper league in every way.
We are going to start off with the less complex and work our way to the more complex. That seems reasonable. So needless to say get ready as we play head shrink over the next couple months to get you ready for the fantasy hockey season. Consider yourselves warned!
Sincerely,
Chris Wassel
“Fantasy Head Shrink”
